Are you looking for some vintage keyboards on your tracks reminiscent of The Doors, The Zombies or The Beatles? Maybe some blues, jazz, rag-time or ballad style piano played on a real 1950’s Challen upright…..? If you are then you have come to the right place!
Andy Pickering is a seasoned musician and has honed his craft in various bands and studio settings; a world tour in The Draytones, recording sessions with the likes of The Telmos and Joe Montague and in his session work for artists and producers including (list them here).
One thing Andy doesn’t compromise on is the quality of his instruments ranging from the 1958 Challen upright piano as heard on records by The Beatles, The Hollies and Pink Floyd, or the classic VOX Continental made distinctive by acts like The Doors, The Beatles and The Zombies.
If you need the sixties sound, a seventies synth or something specific to your tracks then Andy can write the part, record and mix it on the following gear.
The Phillips Phillicorda
The AG7400 was launched onto the market in 1961, as a four-octave, 49 keys single manual, beginning with tone C version. Unusually for the time, it offered several audio inputs and outputs. The organ also shipped with a volume pedal and offered three settings–organ, organ with bass keys and single-finger chords. The AG7400 did not have an internal speaker.
At the beginning of 1963, its successor, the AG7500, was officially launched as the Philicorda. As well as the AG 7500/00, various other versions were produced amongst others for the English (AG7500/11?) and German (AG7500/22) markets. Located below the AG7500 was a tube amplifier with speakers.
The AG7600, launched soon after, was a soundbar type separate amplifier with loudspeakers and offered a spring reverb effect.
The Philicorda 751 (22GM751 with various country specific suffixes such as 22GM751/22 for Germany) was launched in 1967, some of them had both valves (preamp stage) and transistors, followed by the 22GM752, which was fully transistorized. A later model, the 22GM753, launched at the end of 1967, was designed for the stage and was fully transistorized.
Although Philicordas, from the AG7400 to the 22GM753, had slight differences in sound, the Philicorda’s typical warm tone, originally produced using neon bulb based octave dividers, was consistent over the years.
The Vox Continental
The Vox Continental is a transistorised combo organ that was manufactured between 1962 and 1971 by the British musical equipment manufacturer Vox. It was designed for touring musicians and as an alternative to the heavy Hammond organ. It supports drawbars in a similar manner to the Hammond, and has distinctive reverse-coloured keys. The sound is generated by a series of oscillators, using a frequency divider to span multiple octaves.
The Continental became a popular instrument in the 1960s and 1970s, especially with garage and later new wave bands, and was used by the Beatles, the Animals, the Doors, Iron Butterfly, Elvis Costello, and Madness. After being phased out of production in the early 1970s, the instrument remained a sought-after combo organ by enthusiasts.
1958 Challen Upright Piano
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The Nord Electro
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